Managing Printers in Windows Server
Windows Server 2008 can share printers without adding any server roles. However, adding the Print Services server role adds the Print Management snap-in, which simplifies printer configuration.
Use the buttons below to navigate through the lesson
Installing the Print Services Server Role
In the Server Manager console Right click Roles. Select Add Roles. Select Next. Select Print Services. Then Next. Select Next to continue. Select Role Services. Select Role Services. If Internet Printing is selected IIS will be installed as part of the setup. . Click Next. Select Add Required Role Services. Select Next. Select any additional Web Server components and click Next. Select Install. Select Close to complete the installation. Print Services role has been added.
Installing a printer using Control Panel
Select Settings>Control Panel>Printers. Select Add a Printer. Select Add a local printer. Select Use an existing port. LPT1(Printer Port). Then Next. Select the printer from the list then Next to continue. If the Printer is not in the list use the Have Disk to add. The default name for the printer can be changed if required. The Printer can be set as your default printer. Click Next to continue. Printer can be shared and a location specified. Select Next to continue. Click Finish.
Installing a Printer Using the Print Management Snap-in
Expand Print Services and Right Click the print server. Select Add Printer. Select the installation method Add a new printer using an existing port. Select the required port then Next to continue. Choose print driver option then Next. Choose printer then Next. Choose printer name and sharing options then Next. Printer installation continues. Select Finish to complete the installation.
Printer Pooling
Printer pooling involves assigning multiple print devices to a single printer. A printer pool would be used in a setting where there is a large amount of printing done, such as in a secretarial environment. Printer pools reduce the amount of time employees spend waiting for their printouts, and thus increase productivity. When print devices are pooled the printer sends the print job to the first available print device. To create a printer pool, all the printers MUST be identical, i.e., they must all function using the same driver.
Right click one of the printers to be pooled. Select Properties. Select Ports tab. Select Enable printer pooling. Select Ports to be pooled. Select OK to complete.
Adding Drivers
Right click Drivers. Select Add Driver. Click Next to continue. Select Processor and Operating system then click Next. Select Driver to be installed and click Next. Click Finish to complete. The new driver has been added to the list.
Sharing a Printer
Open Control Panel>Printers. Right click the printer to be shared and select Sharing. Select Share this printer. A share name is suggested for you although this can be easily changed. If the printer is to be shared on a mixed network (i.e. Older version of Windows) then select Additional Drivers. Render print jobs on client computers saves processing power on the server. The printer can also be listed in Active Directory. Click OK to complete.
Printer Permissions
Right click the Printer and select Properties. Select Security tab. The Print permission allows a user or group to print to a printer. The Manage Printers permission allows a user to pause and restart the printer, change its settings and manage its permissions. The Manage Documents permission allows a user to pause, restart and delete queued documents. This permission does not allow a user to change any of the printer settings. The Everyone group has been given the Print permission by default, so all users can print to the printer but not manage the printer or other people’s print jobs. The Creator Owner can mange their own documents. Click on OK to continue.
Print Scheduling
Printer Scheduling is a method of preventing print jobs from being processed until a set time. It can be used in situations such as a department printing large, non-urgent reports and another that prints single page urgent documents. You can configure two printers for one physical print device. One of the printers can be set to only print outside office hours. Another can be set to print immediately. Only those people who need to print the urgent documents have the “Print” permission for that printer. This means that the single page documents will print out immediately, and the large reports will be waiting for their owners when they come into work the next day.
Printer Scheduling is set up from the Advanced tab of the printer’s properties page. Click Available from. This might be set to be from 10:00 to 18:00. Another printer can be shared using the same print device with a different schedule. The two printers can then be used by different users. A printer can be given a priority, so that jobs sent to this print device using this printer can be given higher precedence over jobs from other printers. 1 is the lowest priority and 99 is the highest. For example two printers can be created, one for the Managers having a priority of 99 and one for standard users having a priority of 1. The Manager’s Documents will always print before the user’s documents.
Managing Internet Printing
If you install the Internet Printing role service, you can manage printers by using a Web browser to visit the URL http://<ServerName>/Printers.
The Web page lists the printers shared by a server and their current status.
Type http://<ServerName>/Printers in the browser address bar. Fill in the login details and click OK.
Click a printer to view more detailed information about that printer, including the current print queue, and to pause, resume, or cancel printing.
